Ottawa holds Air Canada to layoff rule obligations

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Air Canada must live up to its
labor-code obligations to laid-off workers as it embarks on a
plan to cut 2,000 jobs to deal with surging fuel prices, the
Canadian government ruled on Friday.

But Air Canada, the country's biggest airline, said the
ruling would not affect its plans to complete its cuts by
November 1.

"I have instructed labor program officials to monitor the
situation to ensure that any affected employees receive their
entitlements under the Canada Labor Code," Labor Minister
Jean-Pierre Blackburn said in a statement.

Air Canada had asked for a waiver from its labor code
obligations after it announced the cuts in June. Union
officials had argued there was no justification for Air Canada
to be exempted.

Under the rules, employers cutting 50 or more jobs in a
four-week period must notify the minister, union officials and
nonunion employees at least 16 weeks before the termination
date.

They must also establish a joint planning committee to make
all reasonable efforts to develop an adjustment program for the
terminated staff, the ministry said.

Air Canada plans to lay off 7 percent of its workforce by
November as it reduces capacity amid record fuel costs and an
economic slowdown.

"Our objective was to proceed with mitigation discussions
as quickly as possible for the sake of the affected employees
so that everyone knows what their options are," Air Canada
spokeswoman Angela Mah said.

"The only question was whether those talks take place
within the framework of the collective agreement or the Canada
Labor Code."
Continued...